Arthur Schaper: RI Taking Out Trash for New Year

Rhode Island had to plow through a lot of garbage in 2013, believes Arthur Schaper. Photo: Flickr/Charley Lhase

“Then throw it in the garbage!” – Speaker Gordon Fox

Rhode Island had to plow through a lot of garbage in 2013. At least the state hasn’t turned into a landfill of bankruptcy and despondency, yet.

First, there was the devastating hurricane earlier this year, which assaulted the Ocean State. Governor Lincoln Chafee called a state of emergency. Only two other savage winds had trashed the New England coastline so savagely in the last one hundred years. At least residents can know that their governor has some power, like telling people to stay in their homes or hide in their cellars.

However, the natural disasters are just the tip of the typhoon. The real eye of the storm whirling through Rhode Island is the landmark pension reform laws, most of which will face heavy scrutiny and even weightier challenges in the year to come. Labor unions have already taken on potential gubernatorial candidates like General Treasurer Gina Raimondo, whom many believe is beholden to Wall Street, not Main Street.

Republican-Independent-Democratic Chafee trashed his prior political affiliations, yet ended up throwing away any chance of reelection in 2014. In other political realms, the cycle of who will campaign for what was running full blast. Who will run Providence? Who will run for Governor? Harrop, Binder? Fung, Block, Taveras? Oh my!

Speaking of tempests on the waves, i.e. the airwaves, the trash-talking shock-jock John DePetro may be facing the ashtray of radio history should the statewide boycott against his WPRO tenure burst. ProJo’s Edward Fitzpatrick reports conflict concerns. Will Rhode Island politicians ending up junking their constituents’ First Amendment rights by pressuring DePetro out of his job? Freedom of speech is nothing, let alone free, if it does not include protecting the right of people (and the Right) to say/blog/publish what they want to on the airwaves.

And speaking of crap and corruption in the social media universe, Congressman David Cicilline (D-Providence. How ironic!) was the victim of car theft over the Christmas Holiday. Some low-level Grinch made off with the politician’s wallet, gifts, and work-related papers. Now he knows what residents in Providence go through every day. Of course, Cicilline suffered a crime, while Rhode Islanders endure legal thievery every year in high taxes and few job opportunities. How sad for Cicilline, though. Then again, how much did his prior tenure as Providence mayor contribute to the unemployment, crime, and welfare rates in his urban constituency? By the way, why did he tweet the bitter moment on Christmas Eve? Does he not realize that the entire state of Rhode Island has been carjacked by the 38 Studios debacle? Grand Theft Auto: Cicilline?

And to wrap up the crap sack . . .

Rhode Island legislators will take on revenge pornography, trashy stuff. The revenge porn bill brings up big problems: how far should the public permit the state to declare what is illegal? Two consenting adults engaged in such foolish behavior as to videotape their intimate encounters: is that not punishment in itself? Internet privacy and piracy bring up other worries, if such a thing as privacy still exits. NBC Dateline once investigated a stepfather’s property rights into lewd images of his stepdaughter, following salacious revelations that the webcam was recording everything in the young lady’s room.

Already web surfers have to suffer through so much trash online. To think that jilted partners post explicit pictures of their no longer significant others to get back at them: I am at a loss for words. California beat Rhode Island this year on that law, but sadly to the Golden State’s dubious distinction, Governor Moonbeam enacted a sweeping gun registry and approved driver’s licenses for illegal immigrants.

Governor Chafee called the meandering intellectual property of the now-defunct 38 Studios debacle “A lot of junk.” Former Governor Donald Carcieri, Speaker Gordon Fox, and even Minority leader Brian Newberry should have thrown out any loans for 38 Studios.

Chafee has dismissed any discussion of tossing the state sales tax . A responsible executive, Chafee wants to know how the General Assembly will make up the lost revenue. They could stop the spending spree, but eighty years of getting reelected signals to political parties that they can keep doing what they are doing (insanity!) While Ocean State residents surf the Internet and purchase goods online to avoid the sales tax, the rest of New England can profit from the bad news, as active Rhode Islanders will continue to shop around for cheaper gas and goods North and West of the Commonwealth.

As for the end of the Holiday Season, ProJo reminded readers where and how to dispose of Christmas Trees. Governor Chafee certainly will heed the announcement, since he restored the Holy to the Holly and the Ivy in 2013. Also, Providence readers can learn about how to reject the refuse with Trash Tutorials. How to throw away your Christmas trees, how to throw away any trash: these subjects are news?

ProJo may be joining the ash heap, as well, with layoffs a flurry, and buyouts a plenty.

Using the power of social media and advocacy, parents of not only the students involved on the bus in question, but others as well banded together to demand accountability. They sought answers from the City of Providence and the bussing company, First Student, as to why the buses were late, why monitors were missing from some buses, and why it was so hard to reach anyone when they called.

When a report came to light that showed that consultants had suggested multiple options for cost savings besides the re-routing chosen, parents and the public questioned the Taveras administration's decision to cut costs when kids were arriving late to school, and home at night, up to 90% of the time.

The school committee brought the consultants back in to discuss better options, the results of which are yet to be seen. There is little doubt that parent advocates who used Facebook to share their stories and call for answers from the city and bussing company will continue to press the issue that students are brought to and from school on time.

12 John DePetro

Radio talk show host John DePetro may have uttered his now infamous "whores" line back in September about female union members who picketed a fundraiser for General Treasurer Gina Raimondo, but a campaign that began quietly to protest his language picked up steam—and attention—in the weeks that followed.

The group For Our Daughters started a change.org petition to pressure advertiser Alex and Ani to sever ties with the show and DePetro. While DePetro offered an apology, it apparently wasn't enough for Governor Chafee, who signed the petition, and said he would not appear on WPRO as long as it had a relationship with DePetro. Soon other elected officials and candidates for statewide office followed suit, and DePetro hasn't been on air since the situation heated up.

In his defense, a change.org petition was started in support of DePetro by "RI Citizens for Free Speech", which writes that DePetro is "under attack by a paid organized union smear campaign designed to silence his vocal criticism. Do not allow politicians and unions to suppress free speech guaranteed by the First Amendment! We will not tolerate the sponsorship of the callers or the host of the John DePetro Show!"

11 Teamster's Threat

The inside machinations of internal Teamsters politics don't usually rise to the surface of the general public—or to the level of the Independent Review Board, established by consent decree between the Teamsters and U.S. government to investigate allegations of corruption—but it happened when New England Teamsters boss Sean O'Brien threatened retaliation against the opposition slate in the recent Local 251 elections in Rhode Island.

GoLocal obtained a copy of the video which features O'Brien, President of Teamsters Local 251 in Charlestown, MA and President of Joint Council 10, saying that Joe Bairos is one of his closest allies. Bairos was the Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Union Local 251 in Providence, RI.

"Anyone who takes on Bairos—they've got a major problem, they'll never be our friends—they need to be punished, held accountable for their actions," said O'Brien, who continued, "TDU sucks, go home...there's no doubt in my mind you're going to kick TDU's ass."

O'Brien's actions earned him an investigation from the Review Board—outlined here—and Teamsters for a Democratic Union, the opposition slate targeted by O'Brien, were ultimately successful in RI. O'Brien's actions marked one of 2013's biggest blunders.

10 Tripathi Accused

One of the saddest and most tragic blunders of 2013 happened when Brown student Sunil Tripathi, who had been missing since last seen on campus in March, was mistakenly identified as a suspect in the Boston marathon bombings in the chaotic days that followed.

When the Boston bombings occurred and the news and social media was awash in trying to identify who the bombers were, Tripathi was mistakenly identified in one of the photos as being a suspect. For several hours, Reddit, Facebook, Twitter, lit up with speculation that the missing student was somehow involved with the act of terrorism.

Tripathi's named was cleared when the Tsarnev brothers were identified and pursued, but not after putting Tripathi's family in national—and international—media spotlight the case of mistaken accusation. Tripathi's family, in a display of grace and courage, issued a statement to thank those who supported them throughout the ordeal, and used the events to raise awareness of finding Tripathi. Sadly, Tripathi's body was discovered a week later off India Point in Providence.

9 Pools

When the City of Providence announced that the pool at the Davey Lopes Recreational Center would not be reopened in the summer of 2013, citing declining numbers in attendance, it set off a community reaction that might not have been anticipated by the Taveras administration.

The city said they would replace the pool with a water park, but community advocates from Councilman Davian Sanchez to Ray Rickman to Leah Williams Metts -- and dozens of others -- decried the move to deny youth the recreational opportunity of a swimming pool, and the ability to learn how to swim.

8 Schilling's Knock Out

It has been no secret that there has been no love lost between Curt Schilling and Governor Lincoln Chafee in the fallout of the demise of 38 Studios, with a good deal of back-and-forth (and name-calling) taking place on Twitter.

As Rhode Island—and taxpayers—continue to address paying back over $100 million on the bonds issued for the video game company in 2010, Schilling's tweet goes to show just how heated the failure of 38 Studios continues to be.

"That language was clearly written for a desired outcome, and that was that was to deter us from following up on the request," said AFSCME's Kreisberg. "These are public records—and they want to gouge us to get them, if at all? I don't think so."

Forbes columnist Ted Siedle weighed in. "In my experience, hedge funds—and their managers—know exactly what they're charging, and what their management fees are in basis points. These numbers should be readily available," said Siedle. "For a public office to ask that kind of money for public records, while legal, is pretty much unheard of."

In a departure from current Rhode Island General Treasurer Gina Raimondo's strategy, former General Treasurer Frank Caprio announced that he will reduce the number of money managers and use of hedge funds in his bid for the office in 2014.

In a statement released on the Diocese of Providence's website on December 8, Tobin wrote, "There is part of President Mandela’s legacy, however, that is not at all praiseworthy, namely his shameful promotion of abortion in South Africa. In 1996 Mandela promoted and signed into law the “Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Bill” that, according to the New York Times, “replaced one of the world’s toughest abortion laws with one of the most liberal.

Tobin continued, "While we pray for the peaceful repose of President Mandela’s immortal soul and the forgiveness of his sins, we can only regret that his noble defense of human dignity did not include the youngest members of our human family, unborn children.”

A group called "Faithful America" responded by presenting Tobin with 19-thousand signatures demanding that he apologize for the remarks. In the petition they wrote, “Bishop Tobin, your shameful and mean-spirited attack on Nelson Mandela is an embarrassment to the church.”

“The recently reported case of a 15-year old girl being hired as a performer at a local adult entertainment establishment made clear the need for stricter requirements,” stated Solomon. In 2009, Solomon sponsored the city ordinance which prohibits people under the age of 18 from working at such venues. After the City approved the ordinance, the State also passed a law barring minors from employment at adult entertainment establishments.

Solomon would require adult entertainment licensees to obtain a criminal background check for each prospective employee, for the specific purpose of age verification. “Relying only on a driver’s licenses or a state-issued photo identification card as proof of age has proven to be problematic in a number of cases at strip clubs, as IDs can be manipulated and falsified,” Solomon said. “Requiring background checks for all employees, as a condition of the license for an adult entertainment venue, will allow owners and managers to obtain reliable information, so that they can be sure they are not violating city and state law by hiring minors.

Chafee's bowing out left the the Governor a "lame duck"—and dramatically changed not only the playing field for 2014, but how the game will be played.

Said Jennifer Duffy with the Cook Political Report, "At least through the primary, the race was going to be all about Chafee, his record, and his style of governing. Now, the contest takes on all of the characteristics of an open seat. The candidates are going to have to lay out very clear visions for how they would lead the state. At the same time, they are going to have to focus more on each other. Chafee was a very unifying target."

3 Empty Superman Building

In the middle of the 2013 General Assembly session, privately-owned, Massachusetts-based High Rock Development, who purchased the Industrial National Bank Building in 2008, indicated it was seeking $48 million in historic tax credits from Rhode Island, in order to convert the historic "Superman" structure into roughly 250 to 275 apartments in the 428 foot tall office tower.

In 2011, former Providence Mayor Joseph Paolino warned that the building was a "ticking time bomb" - speculating what could happen if anchor tenant Bank of America were to leave. Prophecy became reality when Bank of America moved out in 2013, leaving the iconic downtown building vacant.

However, turning the building into predominantly residential space—with assistance from the city and the state—was not an easy sell, as taxpayer backing of 38 Studios remained fresh on Rhode Islanders' minds.

The timing of the proposal—well into the General Assembly session—was one of the cautionary flags for some. "This is looking way too similar to 38 Studios with the timing of all of this," said Representative Patrick O'Neill, who had been part of Speaker of the House Gordon Fox's leadership team - but split on the handling of 38 Studios. "The mid-session announcement, the prospect of it getting pushed to an 11th hour vote with no idea what it looks like. We just can't afford to go down that road again."

In total, the funding that the developers were looking for from the state amounted to approximately $75 million in local, state, and federal funding—which just so happened to be the amount of the EDC's doomed loan to 38 Studios. Would it have made a difference had the amount not been so tied to the failed video game company? Former—and current—gubernatorial candidate Ken Block said, "Hang on to your wallets! The Superman Building project has all the makings of another 38 Studios."

Said Block, "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me. The State of Rhode Island has already been duped by the 38 Studios debacle and many legislators indicated that they did not know on what they were voting when they approved that deal."

However, due to the reorganization of the state's education boards into the one Board of Education, Di Pasquale's most recent contract is solely for his duties at CCRI—at the same pay level as when Di Pasquale serving as commissioner as well.

GoLocal uncovered that since 2006, over $50,000 has been spent on maintaining the pool on the President's property on the CCRI Knight Campus—and that in the same time frame, DiPasquale has expensed over $20,000 in entertaining costs at the private University Club.

As student loan debt surpasses $1 trillion in the United States, tuition costs have increased more than 1,000 percent in the past three decades. In 2012, the average salary for a community college president was $167,000 in 2012.

GoLocal reported on restaurants looked at by the state between July 15, 2012 and July 15, 2013; establishments what were not looked at during this time would not have been reflected.

Nearly half of the restaurants inspected in the city over the past year had less than ten violations reported during a single inspection. Those with higher levels of violations were often inspected again later in the year, and for most of those restaurants, the number of violations found the second time decreased significantly.

While some restaurants had over 20 violations found by the Department of Health—a number of establishments thought the inspectors comments helped to point out—and turn around—any health code blunders.

"When the inspector came, she was fantastic," said Lucia Chacon of Ristorante Lucia on Atwells Avenue. "She was very helpful, explaining what needed to be done, which we took care of. It was a very good thing."